Starting Off Survival With A Small Treehouse

Chapter 988: Chapter 557: Stone

Just like the various exams and tests on Earth a millennium ago, the alien invaders conduct various forms of tests to select even finer individuals among this group of already relatively superior humans and their descendants.

And those genetically modified humans that Shi Wanyun encountered on the world tree are people who have passed the second round of selection.

But the selection has not ended yet.

Humans who have passed the second round of selection are like students who passed the college entrance exam millennia ago and got into a university.

They still do not meet the standard of excellence.

Thus, on that world tree, akin to higher education institutions of old, a new round of selection takes place.

The third level of selection.

Based on the success of genetic mutations, the status of humans who have entered the world tree is differentiated by levels of superiority and inferiority.

The three levels of selection are interconnected.

And the most surprising thing is that these three levels of selection are mostly carried out through the humans themselves.

Humans who have gone through these three levels of selection almost never meet those real manipulators behind the scenes, those alien invaders.

These people even think that by passing these selections, they can get close to those alien beings they believe are gods, and possibly... return to their homeland, Earth.

They don’t know that they are actually standing on Earth itself.

Perhaps the selection is not over yet.

Whether those who pass the third level of selection will undergo a fourth or fifth level, no one knows.

But what is certain is that this selection is not over yet.

After all...

As the controllers of this selection, those manipulators behind the scenes, those alien invaders have not stepped in.

How the humans who finally pass the selection will be used is still up to those alien invaders to decide.

Xu Xin finished speaking.

Shi Wanyun was no longer deep in fear but instead looked at him with a very complex expression.

Bewilderment, confusion, shock, disbelief, and...

Contemplation and a hint of sudden realization.

"What are you talking about? Alien invaders? We are still on Earth?"

Shi Wanyun asked, grabbing Xu Xin’s arm and staring at him intently: "What you said just now, is that your guess? Or have you obtained evidence?"

Now the panic and confusion in her heart have surpassed the fear in her memory.

In fact, the speculations Xu Xin mentioned align almost exactly with her own.

Except for the background of the speculation.

In her idea, this is not some Earth a millennium later, but another planet, possibly even another world.

And the mastermind behind all of this is not some alien invader, but what she has seen... that monstrous creature that almost broke her spirit.

At this thought, the image of the monster resurfaced in her mind.

And fear rose in her heart again!

She shook her head vigorously.

Now is not the time to think about these things!

She pursed her lips and looked into Xu Xin’s eyes.

Now, she just wants to know whether the background of Xu Xin’s theory is also his conjecture.

Or is it the truth?

"What do you think? Do you think what I said is real?" Xu Xin asked in return.

"Real...?" Shi Wanyun murmured.

"Haven’t you ever speculated about this world?"

"I... of course I have."

Shi Wanyun’s hand that was tightly holding Xu Xin’s arm slowly relaxed and rested limply on the bed.

She said softly, "Everything here is too similar to Earth, the ecological environment and species are very similar, plus the initial data and prompt sounds, I initially thought this was just a very realistic virtual world, and we are just a group of people in a deep sleep."

"Do you still think so now?" Xu Xin asked.

"Of course not." Shi Wanyun shook her head, "Because the sensory experiences are too real, I’ve already tried hard to find flaws in this aspect, but my conclusion eventually was that this is a real world."

"This cannot be a fake world. If a fake world can be so real, indistinguishable from the real world, then... it’s not a fake world anymore; it’s a real world."

"So, I started to change my thinking. This world might be a parallel world of Earth, or a planet created based on Earth’s ecology."

Shi Wanyun looked at Xu Xin, her eyes carrying a complex look: "When I saw that monster, I actually leaned more towards the latter."

"This is a planet created by a highly intelligent species that mimics Earth’s ecology. Or perhaps, conversely, the Earth we lived on was actually the mimic, a scaled-down version constructed by modeling this planet."

Ah, this...

Xu Xin was a bit taken aback.

This woman’s imagination is something else...

Although he hadn’t not thought of various possibilities himself, those ideas mostly just flashed through his mind.

"But now, you’ve given me another possibility." Shi Wanyun’s eyes trembled slightly, "Is this... Earth a thousand years later? Have you... obtained any evidence?"

She did not doubt Xu Xin.

"Evidence..."

Xu Xin was still hesitant about whether to reveal the truth to her, whether to consider her...

As one of his own.

In fact, during the process where Shi Wanyun was explaining to him earlier, he had already almost decided to trust her.